Liquid circulating system



May 2, 1933., c. W. MCCOY LIQUID CIRCULATING SYSTEM Filed Aug. 28, 1951 2 Sheets-Sheet l w, 6 M W w W C May 2, 1933., c, W, Mc'coY 1,906,704

LIQUID CIRCULATING SYSTEM Filed Aug. 28. 1931 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Inventor A Harney Paten-ted May 2, 1933 cnnuiifisw. MccoY, or .sroxnnn WAsumaronY y y 'f mourn t'n'iszctrrn'unev SYSTEM Application ined, August 28, Serialzglo. 559,920.,l -I

My `present invention relatesltoanV improved liquid circulating system designed `,particularly for use in conditioningthe air in motor busses and otherland vehicles, rail- 5 roadcars, water craft, and similar vehicles and craft that are subject to lateral sways or `side tilts while traveling. In :thelaccom- AYpanying drawings I have illustrated aimotor* bus, and hereinafter I 'have described the.in.

Fstallation of the circulating systemas adapted for the bus which derives its power from an internal combustion engineer motor, as an exemplifcation of the prm'ciples'vof my invention 'f `15 culating system is used incombination with a heater receiving heat from exhaust `gasof the engine, and the liquid or hot water is cir' culated through -a loop or circuit from 'which 2n thevheat is distributed orradiatedfor Warming the interior of the bus; The buse is also equipped withy asecond loop 'A or circuit for cooling its interior by means of a refrigerant,

as iced brine, and the brine is circulated by 25 lmeans ofthe devices lof myinvention. Thus the liquid circulating system may readilybek converted for ywarming `the interior of the vbus during cold weather, and forcooling the l interior of the bus during warmer hot weather, and lmeans, are providedfor rendering-inactive the warming system While'the cooling system is being employed, and for rendering inactive the coclingsysternv while `the heatingy system' isactiv-e'or being operated. In both cases, the circulation of the hotwater', or of the cold brine, is accomplished responsive to thelate'ralg sway or side tilt of the'bus while ity is traveling, and for this purpose I employ'a which are maintained at all times tWo different liquid levels, andthe tendency of the liqf uidto seek a normallevel is utilizedito vcausey agravity circulation of the liquid through-- outfthe' conditioning system. ,Means are profor maintaining thetwo liquid-levels in the tank. 'f

.combinations and r`farrangements of parts as Y In its adaptation to theV motor bus-the cirp `tionalviewof the'supplytank, disclosing a tank having atleast two compartments `1nv plytaink 4 through fthe feed pipe 5.

vided in the tank, operative responsive to the K. llateral sway orfside tiltof the' bus ,and'tank,f

e Theqinvention consists .in certain .fnovel- K .l

from thetank to the heater through pipe'f5.

will hereinafter be more `fully set forth'and claimed.r` Inf-the accompanying drawings I have i'llustratedone complete example-of the physical embodiment lo'my invention: in e which the'parts are Lcombined and arranged 155 according to one mode I have thus fardevised for 'the' practical application; of the principlesof my invention. c f r Figurei'l'is a perspective view showin by dotted lines a well known type of motor us, '6 equipped with an internal combustioneengine iormotor, and having the convertible heating and` cooling systems kof my inventionV installedrtherein'for use.` A f Figure 2l ,is a longitudinal, vertical, vsec` ''arralfi'gement.` Y"

" Figure 4 is aperspectivevviewof the liquid- .transfer nozzle.`r q l ure y5 isa perspective view of theyad- "76 justa le dam'or separator plate. Figure 6 is a perspective view showing the guide bracketsl for the adjustable dam.y Figure 7 vis a perspective view of a tank with asingle transso fer nozzle'therein. l y

' In 'Figure 1 where the general assembly and arrangement of parts are shown in connection with a standard type of lmotor bus equipped with an internal combustion engine, the manilold` for exhaust 'gas vfrom .the'engine isrk indicated atl, and theexhaust pipe is clesigggnai-V cd2. `Iny the linstallation of the heatingsys- 'tern' for the bus I lutilize a heater 3 thatsurroundsav portion ofthe yexhaust gas pipe, and

this heater, in the form of afcylinder receives thewater tobeheated from an elevated supi-Y Thev supply'tank, `as shown Ais arranged transversely ofthebus and is' rigidly secured to its chassisjormainframe, 'in order'that 1' thetank-mal'ytilt or sway laterally'withthe 1 bus, 'fasthe vehicle is traveling, and/the tank is elevated ata higher level than the heater 3 in order that the waterinay owby gravity no A control valve 6 is provided in the feed pipe 5, and the latter, as shown, is attached at the bottom of the tank and centrally thereof, while the heater end of the feed pipe is pro-vided with a cut-olfvalve 7.

The cut-ofi' valve is operated through the use of a pivoted link 8 that extends forwardly of the bus and is pivotedto a pedal or foot lever 9 which is located in positionwreadily accessible to the driver of the bus for opening and closing the valve when necessary or desirable.l

rFwo hot-water pipes 10 and 11 forming part of the hot water loop or circuit are connected to the bottom of the tank near its opposite ends and these pipes, adjacent the tank, are provided with control valves 12 and 13, and the loop is connected to the heater 3 by the short, vertical pipe 14. A cut-off valve 15 isprovided in this short hot-water pipe, and its stem is pivotally connected at 16 to the link 8, thereby connecting or coupling the two cut-off valves 7 and 15 so that they are simultaneously -controlled by operation of the pedal 9.

As shown in Figure 1 the hot-water pipes 10 and 11 are disposed parallel, at opposite sides of the bus, and in a horizontal plane between the lower heater and the upper tank, and these pipes, which are located just above the floor of the bus, may be provided with radiators if desired to increase the heating surface yfrom the hot water as it is circulated between the tank and the heater.

The tank may be filled through the inlet or filling pipe 17, and for draining the tank when required a drain pipe 18 is connected to the bottom of the tank and provided with a drain valve 19. The circulation of the water follows the feed pipe 5v through which the water iows by gravity from the tank to the heater, and the heated water rises from the heater at the end opposite to its ingress and flows back through the two pipes 10 and 11 to the tank. The water thus iows from the central part of thetank to the near end of the heater, and returns from the far end of the heater 3 through pipes 10 and 11 tothe opposite ends of the tank.

The brine loop 20 for cooling the interior yof the bus is located in the upper part of the bus, just below its clerestory, in order that the cooled air may descend toward the` floor of the bus, and thus distribute the cooled air throughout the interior of the bus.v The rear ends of the loop 20 are connected by upright branches 20a and 206 to the top of the tank, near its opposite ends, and the overhead loop is provided with cut-ofi' valves 21 and 22 adjacent the tank, which are l manually controlled for cutting out the ,overhead loop when the heater is used for heating purposes. When the hot water pipes are employed, of course all of the hot water valves are opened and the cut-olf valves 21, 22 are closed;` and when the brine loop is employed to cool the bus the valves 21 and 22 are opened, but valves 6, 12 and 13 are closed, as are also the valves 7 and 15.

The brine, which may be cooled before it is put in the tank, or which may be cooled by the adition of ice to the tank, Hows upwardly from one end of the tank, as through pipe 20a, and returns to the opposite end of the tank, as down through pipe 206. The tank is provided with two brine compartments, one with a high level or surface line at the left in vFigure 1 and also in Fio'ure 7 and the other at a lower level or lower surface line as at the right in Figures 1 and 7. That is, the outlet compartment has a higher head of brine than the inlet compartment, and this condition is maintained at all times while the cooling system is being used, the ends 23 and 24 of the brine loop being located below the brine lines.

In the hot water heating system, as disclosed, the tank has a central outlet compartment C with a high water head or water line, and two end compartments E and E with a lower water line orl head than in the outlet compartment.

The higher head of water for the outlet compartment is maintained through the instrumentality ofgone or more automatically operating devices that are responsive to the tilting or swaying motion of the traveling bus, and'which are instrumental in causing the water, or brine, to flow from an inlet compartment to the outlet compartment.

In Figure 2 a duplex arrangement of these devices is shown at A and B, while in Figure 7 av single device B is illustrated for circulating the brine as described.

The devices A and B are of similar construction, but arranged to opera-te or cause flow of water in opposite directions, and the description of parts of one device will suffice for both devices.

A lid 25 is provided in the top of the tank to close an opening through which access may be had to the interior of the tank for installing and adjusting these devices A and B, and the movable parts of the devices are supported by means of arcuate brackets 26 and 27 that are attached to the inner sides of the front and rear walls of the tank. The brackets are stationary, and are fashioned with arcuate slots 28, 28 complementary one to the other,

for the support of a transversely disposed, curved, wall or partition 29, in the nature of a dam or concavo-convex barrier plate havs ing an opening 30 therein. At its lower edge the curved plate is provided with a pivot,

annunci l j and E in the tank. The barrier plates are of y sulicient height to entirely close communication between adjoining compartments, if desired, and they may be swung on their pivots 32 toV perpendicular position or to angular positions of less than 90 degrees, as indicated in Figure 2, and by means of perforatedfears 33 on the plate, and clamp bolts34 engaging the slotted brackets, the plate may be secured in angular adjusted position.

Sufficient space is indicated wash over the plates from 'oneof the outer,

intake compartments E or E to the inter mediate, outlet compartment C. Thus, if the bus sways, tilts or leans sidewise suiciently to lift the E end of the tank or lower the E end, water in compartment'E will splashor flow over the top of the concave-convex wall intocompartment C. Inasmuch as the bus is swaying intermittently from lside to side as it travels,'it will be apparent that this movement occurs with sufficient frequency to maintain a higher head or waterlevel in the outlet compartment than in the' inlet compartments, consequently ythe water flows by cordance with the conditionof the road `overwhich the bus travels. If the road is particularly rough or uneven, some of the water may splash from the central outlet compartment over a dam intoan inlet compartment,

but the transverse walls may be adjusted to compensate for this condition in order that the higher head or level maybe `maintained in the outlet compartment.

To insure a transfer of waterfrom the in- Y let compartments to thev outlet compartment, even on the smoothest roads, means are provided, responsive to the lateral` sway or tilt, as when the bus isA making a turn, for feeding the water -to the outlet compartment to maintain its higher head or water level; Each of the barrier plates is provided withy angular arms 85 having perforated ends 36, and a gate or lclosure 37 havingzcomplementary arms 38 is pivoted at 39`to these arms 35. The gate has a curvatureto confform to the shape of the barrier plate and its rv.dimensions are greater than the opening 30 ofthe plate, in order that the gate, regardlessof its position, will always close the opening. An oscillatable, float-supported, funnel shaped, nozzle 40, is secured to the gate 37 with itslarger opening at the inlet sideof the tank and. its smaller outlet opening 41 at the outlet portion of the tank. The funnel is of curved shape as indicated, and at its p above ythe barj rier plates to permit water to splash, flow,`or

discharge end 41 ,funnel or nozzle is iprovided witha float 42 connectedby agimbel -orjpfivot joint l'with theL nozzle. The float is "shown as' 'of elliptical shape with a central openingyto vaccommodate 'the l' discharge end' 7 of the nozzle or funnel, and this float'is'ide- Vs'igr'ied to'suppo'rt the nozzle `with its dis-y charge end abovethe water level inthe out-` lletfch'amber,- at alltimes.` The pivotf39l and `the float 42 support orsuspend the nozzle in correct position to compensate for the'movement of the :tank and the barrier wall'respom Vsivevto the swayingor tilting 'movementof the tank and its walls 29.v Thus, it will `Ibe apparent that as theI tank sways o r tilts with'l auniform, intermittent, movement, vwater will flow from the vhigher end of the tank through 1the nozzle, and bedischarged into vthe outletcompart1nent at the lower side of the barrierplate. x

Althoughthe moving parts andthe stationaryparts of thedevice do not'fh'avewa- 'ter-tigh-tfjoints, itl-will be'evident that the joints V'do not provide sulicient openings `to materially "effect the two maintained; vliquid n' levels in the outlet compartmentandfthe inlet ycompartment or comp artments.`

nozzles,vor one of them,-areca`ls`o"used1in the transfer ofbrine from an inlet compartment to an outlet compartment, when the cooling system is being employed.

lVarious changes andfalterations may be made and are contemplated in adapting the` circulating systemsto different types of veimo hi cl.e s, cars, or craft, and these may be made within the "scope of my claims without de- These lioat supported, oscillatable'tr'ansfer parting from the principles of my invention.-

`Having thus fully vdescribed my invention, what I claim as new kand desire to secure by i Letters Patent is 1. In a liquid circulating system for use with atraveling vehicle, the combination with a transverselydisposed tankr having a transverse wall forming an inlet compart- 'u ment. and anoutlet compartment, means for varylng'the distance ofthe top edge of said wall from the bottom of the tank, and a circulating loop connected to said compart' ments, of means responsive to swaying move` ment of the vehicle for maintaininga higher liquid levelY in the outlet chamber than the level in the inlet chamber.

2. In ja liquid lcirculating system forr use with a traveling vehicle, thecombinationno with a tank having a partition forming an i inlet chamber and an outlet chamber, and a liquid circulating loop connected to said chambers, of a lfloat-supported transfer nozzle suspended in an opening of thepartition '125 and responsive to movements ofthe vehicle for maintaining a higher headv of liquid in the outlet b chamber than in the Vinlet cham- 3. The combination with a tank having i an interior partition with an opening,of a pivoted gate closing said opening, a transfer nozzle carried by the gate and opening to the tank'at opposite sides of the partition,

and a supporting float for the free end ofthe i nozzle.

4. In a liquid circulating system, the combination With a tank having an open-center partition, of a pivoted gate closing the opening in the partition, a transfer nozzle carried by the gate and projecting through said opening, said nozzle opening to the tank at opposite sides of the partition, and a supporting float pivoted on the Jfree end of the nozzle.

5. In a. liquidcirculating system, the combination with a tank having a pair of arcuate, slotted, spaced brackets, of a. concavoconvex barrier plate pivoted at its lower end in said brackets, means for clamping the free end of the plate to said slotted brackets, said plate having an opening therethrough, side .arms on the plate, a gate forclosing said openingr and complementary side arms on said" gate pivoted to the first side arms, a transfer nozzle rigid With the gate, and a pivoted float at the free discharge end of said nozzle.

In testimony whereof I afliX my signature.

CHARLES W. MGCOY. 

